Jan 12 2009 - deer, fox

Stitching on the inside of the deer's ear.

Today we had to cut cartilage and sew holes. We also turned the ears inside out and removed all the bits we didn't need. It took all day to do that... seriously.

Tomorrow we're going to mount our antlers onto our forms... which involves sawing the skulls the right shape then drilling them onto the forms. Then you put clay around it to hold it in place and give it the shape it's missing. I think.

I've chosen to mount a red fox for my life-size mount. Tomorrow we are going to rehydrate them and measure them, and order their forms. Apparently the red fox is the hardest to mount because its skin can get really thin when it's wet, but I'm ready for the challenge. Plus, I really want a fox.

The insides of a deer ear! Kinda looks like people ears.

Carrie's treat of the day : cheesy jalapeño bread.

Chip told us today about a guy who brought in a deer to be mounted.
"So this guy asks me to 'fix the antlers.' Apparently, he didn't like how crooked they were, and blamed the crookedness on the fact that he and his brother had to drag the deer out of the forest. I guess that's when the antlers got bent. .... Yeah, that doesn't happen."

There are two tiny love birds (or something similar) in a cage in the shop. They aren't really annoying or anything, but they do make lots of noise. I noticed today they chirp particularly loud when they hear the saw turn on or when there is some other loud noise. I wonder if they live in constant fear. If you were an animal in a cage in a taxidermy shop, wouldn't you think your end was just around the corner? Maybe it's not the bandsaw they're worried about, maybe it's the fact that it must be terrifying for them in there.

Bubby just has no idea where he is... he's just kinda slow.